Mastering the Devil (Rush Series Book 4) (3 page)

Dr. Burrows
smiled down indulgently into her pretty blue eyes. “For you, my lovely Dr. Ingram, anything,” he said.

“Thanks, Doctor,” she replied, with a soft pat of her hand against his hand.

“Ms. Montanez is in Exam Room 3,” he said.

Turning back to Alex, she said, “Mr. Masters?”

With a brief nod to Dr. Burrows, Alex heaved a relieved breath and moved to follow her.

“I appreciate your help, Dr. Ingram,”
Alex said.

“Ensley, please,” she said
, with a slight laugh. “Dr. Ingram is my father’s name.”

Alex gave a slight nod of his head, his lips thin
ning as he tried to prepare himself for what he might see. His steps slowed as they reached the third exam room. Outside the door, he inhaled deeply and gathered himself. In his mind, he saw her burned and singed. Her golden skin melted from her body. His mouth dried and he rubbed a hand over his face. Dr. Ensley Ingram stood patiently in the doorway of the room and gave him a gentle smile of encouragement.

The room was tiny, barely big enough to hold a bed. Against the far wall
, in the corner, was a stainless-steel coat-rack with a black nylon jacket hanging from one of its prongs, from another prong, hung a black utility-belt and gun holster. His chest burned as he finally made his eyes turn to the bed. The first thing that grabbed his attention was her dark hair fanned out across a stark white pillow. Her curvy body was hidden beneath a white sheet.
What did that sheet hide from his view
, he wondered.

He moved slowly towards the bed, his heart pounding painfully in his chest. He called upon years of
his previous training to stem the flow of emotion running over him from conquering him.

When he reached the edge of the bed
, he stared down into her battered face. Her eyes were closed and her consciousness far away. Even with the bruises and swelling, she was still beautiful. He exhaled sharply when he didn’t see any evidence of burns. He swallowed and reached out a hand, controlling the tremble from sheer will alone. He leaned down and gently cupped her face and pressed his lips against her forehead. Feelings of anger and helplessness swamped him. He was angry at her… angry at the IDEA… angry at Jacob Roundtree for involving her in the agency… and he was angry at her partner for not protecting her better. Mostly, he was angry at himself for not having been there to ensure her safety himself.

“Oh, Little Devil,” he murmured, “What have you done to yourself?”

Instinctively, she snuggled her face into his touch.

The sight of her battered face drew him back to when they’d first met; of her sitting in a tub, her knees drawn up to her chest, looking so lost and broken. His stomach burned with the need to punch something. Damn her for this!
He clenched his jaw. He couldn’t do this… no, he
wouldn’t
do this! He’d told her over and over, and she’d always chosen this… not him. Fury raged through his insides. He refused to bury someone else he loved.

Slowly he allowed his hand to fall away from her and took a step back, both physically and mentally. “Goodbye, Little Devil,” he whispered, before turning towards the door.

He’d only taken a few steps when she whimpered. He closed his eyes when she rasped his name, “Alex?”

His steps faltered and being
unable to help himself, or deny her, he turned back. Her eyes were opened into mere slits. He watched as she swallowed and tried to lick lips which were dry and cracked. His shoulders sagged in defeat. He couldn’t do it. He couldn’t leave her like this. He was a born protector. It’s what had made him both a good military man, then successful in the CIA. All that was needed was a good cause. And she was his ultimate Achilles’ heel.

He smiled gently and moved to squat down by her bed. He took her hand and pressed his lips against it. “Hey, Little Devil,” he said softly.

Through her medication, she slurred, “What are you doing here? Am I dreaming?”

Sweeping the hair from her face, he replied, “I just arrived in Mexico today,” he gave her a small smile. “Your timing couldn’t have been better.”

Her eyes blinked slowly as she struggled to understand the situation through her haze. “You always seem to show up when I need you most,” she whispered.

He brushed his fingers over her face,
then his features took on a more serious expression. “How are you feeling? Are you in pain?”

Her eyes struggled to stay focused on him. “I’ve missed you,” she whispered.

His chest burned with want, need, and anxiousness. “I’ve missed you, too, Little Devil.”

She gave a small smile. “I’m… I’m so… so tired,” she murmured, as her eyes began to close.

He brushed his lips against her hand. “You sleep now.”

He rose to his feet and exhaled silently. “Please don’t leave me,” she mumbled, nearly under her breath, and without opening her eyes.

He blinked down at her for a long moment. “I won’t,” he promised.

A noise at the door reminded him that he wasn’t alone. Ensley stood in the entrance of the room with an orange plastic chair in her hands. “I don’t know how long it’ll be before they move her upstairs. I thought you might be more comfortable with this.”

He gave her a brief smile. “Thanks,” he replied, as he accepted the chair from her.

She gave a brief nod of her head. “I need to go check on my patients. I hope your friend gets better. If you need anything, please have the nurse call for me. I’ll be around for a couple more hours.”

“I appreciate that,” he said, as he placed the chair next to Devon’s bed. Without another word, the soft soles of the doctor’s shoes carried her away. With his eyes only on Devon, he didn’t see her leave.

Alex leaned against the bed and recaptured her hand with
in his palms. He studied the tubes running from her arm up to the IV pole. He slowly moved the sheet aside so he could get an idea of the severity of her injuries. Her other arm was in a sling but he couldn’t quite tell why. Her arm wasn’t in a cast, so apparently it wasn’t broken. The rest of her body was covered by a hospital gown so he really couldn’t see what other damaged she’d suffered.

Sitting back in his chair, his
mind drifted over their past history. During their limited time together, there had always been conflict in one form or another. He studied her battered face, a huge gash running across her cheekbone. He’d hardly known her without bruises of some kind. He wished he knew what to say to dissuade her from this course. But he’d been in her shoes and knew she’d have to find her own way out… just as he’d done. He only hoped her way out didn’t include a pine-box.

He sat in the little cubby with her for nearly two hours before two hospital attendants came to move her to her room.
He’d made a myriad of phone calls to Jacob Roundtree, Cash Devlin, and his boss. Unfortunately, the only one he actually spoken with was his Rush Drayton.

He’d just stepped out into the hall to grab a cup of coffee when
Cash Devlin came down the hall. As with Devon, for there having been an explosion, he looked pretty good. A few scrapes and bruises, but that was all that was evident. Cash’s brows drew together in surprise to see Alex. “Alex… I didn’t realize you were in town or I would have called you. How’d you find out?”

“The hospital called me. Apparently, I’m still her emergency contact.”

“How is she?” Cash asked.

“I’m not sure. She hasn’t woken and the doctor refuses to tell me
anything. What happened?” Alex asked.

Cash waved to an empty waiting room. Alex stepped momentarily back into Devon’s room to ensure she was still asleep before following Cash into the other room.

Cash sat down and scrubbed a hand over features which showed the stress of the last twenty-four hours. When Alex sat down next to him, the other man reached over and snagged the coffee from his hand. “I think I need this worse than you,” he murmured. After a few sips, he rolled his head on his shoulders and leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees.

“I’ve been trying to reach you,” Alex accused sharply.

Cash exhaled slowly as exhaustion rolled off him in waves. “I know. Sorry, I’ve been… busy.”

Alex studied him trying to read whatever unspoken things were happening
beneath their conversation. Irritation and frustration rushed over him. He didn’t have time for these games. “Cash, what happened yesterday? I heard she’d been in an explosion. How could you let this happen?” he accused.

Cash
’s lips thinned as he continued to sip the coffee. “It started out being just an average drug bust. We’d gotten a tip about this meth-house that was selling meth cut with a synthetic street drug called Morning Shadow. We were called in as this particular drug was being shipped to the states. But when we got there, it appeared to be a huge set up. There were no drugs, only the illusion of a meth lab.

Alex’s eyebrows drew together and he shook his head to gather his thoughts, his mind sluggish from lack of sleep. “
What do you mean? Set up?”

Cash took a long sip of the steaming coffee before sitting back and leaning his head against the wall. “The house was rigged to explode… with us in it.”

“Was it a set up for just any law enforcement official, or for someone in particular?” Alex asked, ice slithering up his spine.

Cash’s lips pursed. But his only response was to give a small shrug of his shoulders.

“Any idea who set you up?”

“We have a few theories, but nothing concrete,” Cash replied.

Alex scrubbed a hand over his face. Frustration at not being able to control the situation swarmed over him like bees on a hive. “She could have been killed today!” he accused.

Cash once again pursed his lips. “Yep,” he said, in a light tone.

Alex charged to his feet and turned on the man. “While it might not matter to you or the agency, it matters a great deal to me!”

Cash finished the coffee, set the Styrofoam cup down, and folded his arms across his chest. He lifted his blood-shot eyes up to meet Alex’s furious gaze. “First of all, you don’t give Devon enough credit. She’s a damned-
fine agent. Secondly, we all know the risks involved when we signed our names on the dotted line. So, get off my back, Alex! It’s been a long day and I’m tired.”

Alex’s jaw tightened so hard he thought his teeth would crack under the pressure. “Devon wouldn’t have signed that dotted line had she not been manipulated by Jacob Roundtree! We both know he used the circumstances of her mother’s abduction to entice her
to join.”

Cash gave a small nod of his head in agreement. “We all have our reasons for joining the I.D.E.A. The bottom line is, this was
, and is, her choice.”

The fight drained out of Alex. Cash was right. He had no right to try and dictate the path of someone else. It wasn’t as if she was his wife… hell, she’d barely been more than a vacation tryst. She was a grown woman, who was entirely capable of running her own life. Exhaling deeply, he rubbed a hand over of his tired face. “You’re right, Cash. Sorry.”

At that moment Dr. Ingram stepped into the room and quickly looked about, no doubt drawn by the loud voices. “Everything alright?” she asked softly.

“Yes, thanks. Sorry, didn’t mean to be so loud,” Alex apologized.
From the corner of his eye he saw Cash sit up a little straighter in his chair. Dr. Ingram shifted her eyes to him at the movement. Remembering his manners, he introduced them. “This is Devon’s partner, Cash Devlin. Cash, this is Dr. Ensley Ingram.”

With a smirk
curving his lips, Cash said, “Doctor, is it? Well, I might need a thorough examination.”

The doctor rolled her vividly blue eyes. “Like I haven’t heard that a thousand times.”

“I can be talked into playing the doctor if you’d like,” Cash replied as he slouched back in his chair, completely enjoying his game with the pretty doctor.

She tried without success to keep the smile from her lips. “And you’d be that trouble my mother always warned me about.”

“Yep, that would be me,” Cash said with a grin.

She shook her head and turned back to Alex. “I’m leaving in a little while. Good luck with your friend.”

“Thanks, Doctor,” Alex said.

With a nod and smile in Cash’s direction, she turned and left the room.

“That’s quite the hot little number there,” Cash said in reference to the doctor.

Alex inhaled deeply and rolled his tired shoulders
, not up for Cash’s supposedly witty banner. “Are you going to be here for a little while?” At Cash’s nod, Alex continued, “I’m going down to the cafeteria for a bit. If you will, tell Devon I’ll be right back. Okay?”

“Will do,” Cash replied.

“Can I get you anything?”

“No, I grabbed a burrito on my way here this morning. But thanks.” Cash said.

Alex gave a bow of his head and turned to walk out of the room. He halted when Cash called his name. “Alex… I, uh, there’s things…” he stopped and attempted his conversation again. “I’ll try to keep her safe, okay?”

Alex’s head tilted as he contemplated the other man. “Safe from what?”